Posted 05/03//2007

Probst named interim chair of HSPM; Stoskopf leaving to head SDSU Graduate School of Public Health

Dr. Jan Probst has been named interim chair of the Department of Health Services and Policy Management at the Arnold School effective June 1. 

She succeeds Dr. Carleen Stoskopf who is leaving to become director of the Graduate School of Public Health at San Diego State University. 

“Dr. Stoskopf has been at the Arnold School for 19 years. While it is always sad to see a colleague go, we can all take pride in knowing that one of our own is accepting the challenge of greater leadership. We all wish her every success in this exciting new role,” said Dean Donna Richter. 

Arnold School faculty and staff are invited to a farewell reception for Stoskopf on Thursday, May 10 from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the lobby of the Public Health Research Center, 921 Assembly St.

Stoskopf will not formally leave USC until July 15 but she will be stepping down as chair on May 31 to allow overlap and coordination with Probst. The school is preparing a formal search for a new department chair.

Stoskopf has been on Arnold School faculty since 1988. She earned a bachelor’s degree in 1978 from Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, IN and a master’s degree from the University of Minnesota in 1997. She earned her doctorate in 1989 from Johns Hopkins University. 

In her new job, she will direct the activities of a 25-year-old public health school with an enrollment of about 340 students and five separate divisions covering a range of health-related disciplines.  

SDSU is one of the 23 campuses of the California State University System with an enrollment of about 33,000. It is one of four nationally accredited schools of public health in California. 

Stoskopf says she’s excited by SDSU’s new PhD program in global health which will prepare graduates to become public health researchers and professional leaders in global health settings.  

Stoskopf is already an expert in running doctoral programs abroad, as she has been instrumental in developing the Arnold School’s programs in Korea and Taiwan. 

Distance learning, another strong feature of Stoskopf’s department at USC, is something she would like to strengthen at SDSU where she will start work officially on July 31.